6. Chapter 6
The two young men grabbed lunch in the mess, eating while Riis tried to probe Dare”s lack of a sense of humor. He told the empath several jokes, making Dare laugh, then shook his head.
”You”ve got a sense of humor, thank every God. I think it”s teasing that”s got you stymied. Didn”t anyone verbally poke you on Earth? Family or a friend?”
Dare”s laughter faded as he dropped his eyes to the table. ”I only have my parents, and they”re not close to me. No other family since I”m an only child. I had a few friends, but they were all Mindsets, so there wasn”t any teasing in case it turned uncomfortable and hurt one of us.” He paused, glancing over at Riis”s sad expression. ”It”s alright, Riis. I wasn”t abused or anything, and I love what I do. Maybe it”s being a Mindset. It”s serious work, and we don”t use teasing as a therapeutic tool. I”ll just lighten up and try not to feel like I”m being verbally attacked when someone teases me.”
Riis managed a faint smile. ”I”m glad you told me that, Dare. I never thought of it feeling like an attack. Mindsets must be very kind to each other to be worried about that. Is it because you feel everybody”s emotions and your own?”
The empath looked into his friend”s worried eyes, giving him a gentle smile. ”I only feel the reflections of their emotions, not the whole feeling. I think it”s probable that we are polite and thoughtful, but it”s also living on Earth. Despite losing so many in the climate cataclysm, there are still many people in the urban areas. We have to be polite and disengaged in order to survive. That goes double for empaths or any gifted person.”
Riis blinked a few times, then nodded thoughtfully. ”I can understand that. Just remember you”re no longer on Earth, and that you”re safe here. The crew wants your help, the captain likes you, and more importantly, Mike and I do, too.” He grinned as Dare rolled his eyes. ”Seriously, I mean that. You are safe on this ship, and we want you here. I know the crew is going to tease you. If you don”t understand what they”re saying, ask. Our last Mindset was sheltered, too, so they won”t be surprised by that.”
Dare shook his head. ”I would have said na?ve rather than sheltered, but I guess it”s true no matter how you say it.” He took in a breath and sighed it out. ”Don”t worry about me, okay? I”ll focus on the safety here, and that will take the sting out of any tease.”
Riis sat up very straight, staring at Dare. ”Teasing is supposed to be done in fun, not to be mean. If that happens, let me know. It”ll be the last time they do that.”
Dare met his eyes, his voice soft. ”Do you think I can”t take care of that myself, Riis? Mindsets are taught self-defense, and I”m not afraid to use it if needed. By that, I mean both mental and physical means.”
Riis” shoulders relaxed as he gave the empath a relieved smile. ”That”s very good to know. I might try to defend your honor, but anyone on this crew can kick my butt without breaking a sweat.” Dare chuckled, shaking his head as Riis went on.” I still would have done it, but now you”ve saved me from that. My hero.”
Dare laughed quietly for a few minutes. ”Come on, my knight in a flight suit. Finish up and you can show me my new workplace. You still good for time today?”
Riis gulped down the last of his cider. ”I”m ready when you are. I”ve got all today to get you squared away, per the captain”s orders. That means we”ll need to trek down to the colony deck after you see your office. I sent a message to their director to meet us in two hours. She”ll bring the section supervisors and non-gifted therapists with her as well.”
”Good, that will save time for me. Let”s stop by my berth so I can pick up my pad. I might want to take notes on who”s who.”
Riis stood, placing the used dishes on his tray. ”I”ll bus, then we can get out of here. Good idea on the note-taking. There are a whole lot of colonists with weird, I mean, different names.”
”You mean weird like Riis and Dare?”
Riis ducked his head. ”I told you my mouth runs away from me. I didn”t mean to sound like a bigot. It just came out that way.”
Dare pushed his chair back and stood up, squaring his shoulders as he gave his friend a sharp glance. ”I”ve been on the receiving end of bigotry, and I”d hate to see you go down that road for an easy laugh. I won’t be friends with someone like that, Riis.”
The young assistant stared at Dare for a moment. ”I”m sorry, and I”ll do better. It”s just that I”m an idiot. It”s hereditary.”
Dare struggled not to smile and lost, then shook his head. ”I think you”re a bright guy who likes to make people laugh. Just make sure it”s the right humor, or you”ll find out what I learned in my self-defense classes.”
Riis put up his hands in a warding gesture. ”Stand down, soldier. I promise to do better, okay?”
Dare let a little of his empathy wash over the other man, noting he was sincere. ”We will not speak of this again, alright?”
Riis silently crossed his heart, then took Dare”s arm. ”Let”s go see what will be your home away from home after we pick up your pad.” They walked in silence for several moments, then Riis glanced over at him.
”Do you have a middle name, and is it, by any chance, Righteous?”
Dare snorted, then cleared his throat. ”I don”t have a middle name, you smart ass. I”m sure yours would be Oris.” Riis looked mystified.
”It means mouth in Latin.”
”Now who”s being a smartass?”
”I”m afraid that will always be you, Riis, by history and acclamation.”
Riis shook his head, then sighed. ”Damn.”
Dare”s office was just big enough for a small couch and two armchairs. The wall color was a soothing blue, and there were two standing lamps and the overhead lights. A desk was situated to the left of the entry, with a stool underneath. The comp, well-used, sat on top, along with a small desk lamp.
Riis went directly to the desk, pulling the stool back before sitting on it carefully. He wiggled around for a moment before sighing. ”Why don”t desk stools have a pad or cushion on them? This thing is like sitting on a rock.” He glanced over at Dare”s amused expression and frowned. ”Hey, I”m serious and what happened to all that empathy?” Dare grinned, unrepentant, as Riis glared at him. ”Give me your pad, Your High Mindfulness, and I”ll hook it up to our system. Your first login is your birthdate, so change it right away.”
As Riis fussed with the comp, Dare took in the space where he would spend a lot of his time. He tried out each chair and sat on the couch. They were all comfortable, although they were clearly used. Still, the furniture was better than he had at the public health office, and cleaner, too. The standing lamps gave out a perfect amount of light, and the temperature was just this side of cool. Dare smiled to himself, then nodded. He could work here and be happy with his surroundings.
The empath heard Riis make a sound of satisfaction. Coming over to stand by him, Riis glanced up at him, then smiled, his ire forgotten.
”You”re all set. The Mindset that had this office before uploaded all his notes to the server on this ship under lock. Once you input your credentials and rating, the server will check you out and unlock them. Hopefully. If you hit a snag with that, let me know. The captain can override the lock, if needed. I know you are all big on confidentiality, and I wouldn”t have that any other way, so I”m hoping it opens for you with no problem. Do you know this system?”
Dare looked at the settings. ”I”ve used this system on Earth, so that”s not an issue. What”s my login and password?”
”I”ve logged you in a daremunromindset, and you get to choose your password. I don”t need to know it, of course. Have a seat on this torture device and put in whatever you”ll remember.”
Dare did that, combining his birthdate with his parents to make an eighteen-digit password, Riis pointedly wandering around while he did so. When he finished, the empath turned to Riis who was trying out the couch.
”How are my appointments scheduled? I know this program has a scheduler, but I don”t want to access it when I”m not in here.”
Riis nodded. ”I get that. If you don”t mind, I thought I”d have the crew contact me to schedule them, then I”d send you an email on your pad for the next day. I think that will work without compromising the system or anyone.”
Dare smiled, pleased. ”That would be great as long as it”s not too much work for you and the captain”s alright with it. Once everyone that wants to see me is scheduled, we”ll keep the same times so that will lessen how much you have to do. What about the colonists?”
Riis settled back into the couch with a happy sigh. ”I”m glad you like the idea, and the captain won”t mind. I will tell him, of course. As for the colonists, they”ll have their own system and set up for you on their deck. They won”t want records to be held on this ship, plus they”ll want to take them down with them to the planet. Is all this good for you? We can probably find some art for the walls or something.”
Dare nodded thoughtfully. ”I”m not worried about the walls, but we can look if you want to. I think this will work great as my office. Thanks for your help, Riis. I really appreciate all you”ve done.”
Riis levered himself off the couch. ”I enjoy helping you and you”re welcome. Remember my wonderfulness the next time my mouth takes over my mind. You hungry? I was thinking we could get a snack before we trek down to the colony deck.”
The empath smiled happily. ”I was just going to be hungry, but I like your idea better. I”m not used to so much food, but I like it.”
Riis snorted as he came over to his friend. ”Mike says you”re way too thin, so feel free to eat whenever you want to. Yeah, he looked at you while you were in decon—as a concerned crewmate, of course. Mike”s into ladies, not gentlemen, and, as mentioned before, does not know modesty for himself or anyone else. Speaking as someone who hasn”t seen you naked. You are pretty skinny.”
Dare was silent as they went out the door, heading for the mess. He glanced over at Riis before speaking.
”There wasn”t an abundance of food on Earth, especially when you have little money. I had a subsidy, and that helped, but I guess I got used to eating just enough to stave off starvation, and no more. I know I”m too thin for my height, so I”ll take your advice. Are there any workout rooms on the ship?”
The assistant met Dare”s gaze soberly. ”Whew. I thought I”d insulted you again. Yes, there are several spaces just for exercise. Everybody is supposed to do so at least twice a week to prevent muscle loss. I hate it, but I go.” He grinned suddenly. ”Hey, you can come with me, and we can do it together.”
Dare gave him a wry look. ”You want me to be your external locus of motivation, don”t you?”
Riis nodded excitedly. ”Yes! To whatever you just said. Anything to make exercise less of a chore.”
His friend gave a long-suffering sigh. ”Put it on my schedule, you admin ass, and I”ll be there.”
Riis laughed softly. ”You made a joke! I should have that on my nametag, but I think the captain would object.”
”I don”t know, Riis. He seems pretty flexible. Easy-going, too.”
”That”s because you haven”t seen the Dark Side yet. Still, if I ask him, I”ll tell him it”s your idea, okay?”
Dare shook his head. ”Sure, tell him that. Like he”ll believe you now that he”s met me.”
Riis gave him a considering look, then ducked his head. ”Crap. He probably thinks you”re too pure to use the word ”ass” in a pejorative way. Try cussing the next time you see him. It”ll help.”
Dare stared at him as they reached the mess, stopping just outside the door. ”Sure, I”ll do that as in never. I”m not cussing at the captain, not even for you and your new title.”
The door swooshed open, several crewmates brushing past them. Riis shook his head mournfully.
”You”re no fun, Dare. No fun at all.”
Dare went into the mess first to hide his smile. ”You have no idea, Riis. Absolutely no idea.”